Miles Austin is not only hurt, but the target of this week's avalanche of criticism for fumbling at crunch time.

And your Cowboys are 0-2, headed nowhere fast.

That's what we were staring at if things had gone only slightly different in Candlestick Park. Instead, a fumbled football apparently turned invisible long enough for the Cowboys to escape and the inverse to occur.

Romo is a gritty hero that rallied to his team from 10 points down in the 4th quarter. Bailey has a job thanks to two clutch field goals. Holley is a rising star who caught the 77-yard game-winning-setter-upper. And the Cowboys are 1-1 entering their home opener.

Hope floats.

Austin (hamstring) is no-go for Monday. Romo (punctured lung and all) is expected to play. Terence Newman Tweeted that "I'm back." And we'll have to see about Dez Bryant, but I'd expect to see him in Cowboys Stadium against the Redskins.

Now, about the head coach and that play call ...

Despite Garrett saying Monday it was "a mistake", I maintain that it was a good call. (And, truth be told, I think the coach is protecting a player who made the unpardonable sin of fumbling on the play).

Putting the ball in the hands of your best playmaker is never a bad move. And, if you watch the thing, the Cowboys had the pitch to Austin blocked perfectly to the outside. Doug Free is pulling around left end, with literally no one to block it's so open.

If Austin takes it around left end as designed -- he instead cut it up inside due to his iffy hamstring -- I think he scores on the play. He also fumbled. And this is how lucky the Cowboys were:

The ball squirted out of Austin's grasp to the left and just sorta lay there unnoticed literally at the right foot of 49ers' cornerback Tramaine Brock. He sees the ball and falls on it, the Cowboys lose and Austin and Garrett are getting killed in this here blog today.

Thank you Free for recovering the fumble.

And thank you Bailey, and Romo and Holley for taking advantage of your good fortune.